*sigh* I feel really good today!! Better, in fact, than I have felt in a really really long time! I have to chalk this up, in part, to getting a full night's sleep last night! Don't get me wrong, Braden still required 3 feedings, but as soon as each feed was over he fell right to sleep! This, of course, allowed Mommy to fall right to sleep! I think over all I got in a good 8 hours!
Plus, Braden is doing exceptionally better with his feeds! The last 2+ weeks have been soooo challenging! Just after his immunizations, Braden began a habit of food refusal for HOURS at a time! Freaking out, I took him to the doctor (last minute - so he saw some random doctor) to be told that he's absolutely fine he just needs more reflux medicine! That answer was not good enough for me! Sometimes a Mom just has a GUT feeling when things aren't right. Being a first time Mom, I was torn between my gut feeling and the doctor's suggestion. I mean, they're doctors - they know what they're talking about, right?! Wrong! That night Braden got much worse and ended up severely dehydrated! Thankfully, I have a wonderfully awesome pediatrician who returned my email with a phonecall from his HOUSE to help me figure out what action to take.
I immediately took him to the pediatrician's office and got in an appoitment with another INCREDIBLE pediatrician who totally took the time to listen to all my concerns and said that she 100 percent agreed with my intuition. It was her personal opinion that Braden was experiencing a milk intolerance and would probbaly benefit from a change in formula! I had been practically begging doctors to do this for weeks, but I'm just the Mom - what do I know?!
Since switching to a hypoallergenic formula about 2 weeks ago, my son has gone from screaming/crying almost all day and eating maybe 20 ounces total on a good day, to being a very excitable smiling, cooing baby who seems to have a bottomless pit in his tummy. He's now taking between 26-32 ounces in a 24 hour period!!
He's now getting weekly weight checks to ensure that he continues to gain. Now if only we can get him to spread his feeds apart a little more we'll be golden! However, I know that we need to take small steps! I'm grateful that he's EATING! At this point, I'm not concerned that he's hungry every 2.5 hours! Luckily he goes 4-5 hours between feeds at night! I could not be more ecstatic! A happy baby makes for a happy Mommy!!
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
First Time is a Charm
So here I am... I did it. I finally broke down and started a blog. It's something I've been meaning to do for quite some time. Now seemed as good a time as any. I have decided to create this blog as a means for posting Braden's progress and developmental milestones, as well as give me a place to come to where I can vent all my frustrations and worries.
Living so far away from family, with - let's face it - zero good friends on the islandof Oahu makes for a lonely and trying time. Don't get me wrong, I love having my husband home with me every night and I absolutely love that, being on shore duty, he no longer has to go out to sea for months at a time. However, it's just not the same as when we lived in Washington and I had girlfriends to go and do things with. I also had a job that I loved and was exceptionally good at. My current job as a Stay-At-Home-Mom IS something that I love, although I can't help but feel like it's not something I'm good at.
My husband and I are the very proud parents of a 30 weeker baby. Our son, Braden was born on December 13, 2008 at 2 pounds 11 ounces and was only 15 inches long. He had a very rough start to this life, with a 2 month stay in the NICU - undergoing: jaundice light therapy, bradycardia, apnea, acid reflux treatments , blood transfusions, anemia treatments, and a milk intolerance. I count my lucky stars that things didn't progress to the point of needing surgeries. However, his rough start has lead us down an even rockier road. Currently, he's 4 months and 2 weeks old. However, when referring to premature infants, doctors will typically judge developmental milestones, gross motor skills, and weight gain based on a preemie's "corrected gestational age" - or the age at which a preemie should be assuming he/she was born on his/her initial due date. Braden's corrected gestational age is only 2 1/2 months. Because of this, he only weighs what a 2 1/2 month old weighs and his skills are only at a 2 1/2 month old's level as well.
The thing about parenting that NOBODY ever tells you is that it's H-A-R-D!! And I'm not trying to brag, or toot my own horn here, but I honestly think that parenting a preemie baby is about a million times harder! It's so difficult to try and figure out what's "normal". Even my pediatrician admitted to me how difficult it is to try and diagnose issues with a premature baby. They don't develop at the same rate and they often don't react the same way that other full term babies do.
Of course, my personality is such that I have a hard time dealing with major stress. I've never been the type of person to just let things roll of my back. I'm a "worrier"! I always have been and I always will be! Now, combine that with first-time parenthood and you've got disaster written all over it. Add to that a premature baby and, well, then you've got ME - frazzled, stressed, worried sick, and freaking out over "every little thing". But to me, nothing seems like a "little thing" when it comes to the health and well-being of my son. Right now, I'm trying to just take things a day at a time and go with the flow the best that I can! What else is there to do?!
Living so far away from family, with - let's face it - zero good friends on the islandof Oahu makes for a lonely and trying time. Don't get me wrong, I love having my husband home with me every night and I absolutely love that, being on shore duty, he no longer has to go out to sea for months at a time. However, it's just not the same as when we lived in Washington and I had girlfriends to go and do things with. I also had a job that I loved and was exceptionally good at. My current job as a Stay-At-Home-Mom IS something that I love, although I can't help but feel like it's not something I'm good at.
My husband and I are the very proud parents of a 30 weeker baby. Our son, Braden was born on December 13, 2008 at 2 pounds 11 ounces and was only 15 inches long. He had a very rough start to this life, with a 2 month stay in the NICU - undergoing: jaundice light therapy, bradycardia, apnea, acid reflux treatments , blood transfusions, anemia treatments, and a milk intolerance. I count my lucky stars that things didn't progress to the point of needing surgeries. However, his rough start has lead us down an even rockier road. Currently, he's 4 months and 2 weeks old. However, when referring to premature infants, doctors will typically judge developmental milestones, gross motor skills, and weight gain based on a preemie's "corrected gestational age" - or the age at which a preemie should be assuming he/she was born on his/her initial due date. Braden's corrected gestational age is only 2 1/2 months. Because of this, he only weighs what a 2 1/2 month old weighs and his skills are only at a 2 1/2 month old's level as well.
The thing about parenting that NOBODY ever tells you is that it's H-A-R-D!! And I'm not trying to brag, or toot my own horn here, but I honestly think that parenting a preemie baby is about a million times harder! It's so difficult to try and figure out what's "normal". Even my pediatrician admitted to me how difficult it is to try and diagnose issues with a premature baby. They don't develop at the same rate and they often don't react the same way that other full term babies do.
Of course, my personality is such that I have a hard time dealing with major stress. I've never been the type of person to just let things roll of my back. I'm a "worrier"! I always have been and I always will be! Now, combine that with first-time parenthood and you've got disaster written all over it. Add to that a premature baby and, well, then you've got ME - frazzled, stressed, worried sick, and freaking out over "every little thing". But to me, nothing seems like a "little thing" when it comes to the health and well-being of my son. Right now, I'm trying to just take things a day at a time and go with the flow the best that I can! What else is there to do?!
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